SYSTEM LIFE CYCLE

By Me
 DEFINITION

• This is the very first part of the SLC is to define the problem.
• A system analyst must determine WHY a new system is required.
• In the definition stage the role of the analyst is to scope out the problem.
• The analyst has a number of methods available to do this :
         - Interviews with management to get their viewpoint
         - Interviews with staff to understand the limitations of the current system
At the end of this stage the system analyst should have a detailed understanding of
the problem and the limitations of the current system
 INVESTIGATION AND ANALYSIS

- In order to reach this stage in the SLC, management would have listened to the alternative
solutions presented by the system analyst and have decided to either commission a brand new IT
system or have changes made to their current system.

- During this 'investigation and analysis' phase they will carry out very detailed investigations in
order to fully understand the current system and the proposed new system.

The current system

• how staff / customers interact with the current system i.e. how tasks are carried out
• how other systems interact with the current system
• what is good about the current system
• what causes problems with the current system
• which parts of the system are critical to the business

The proposed new system

• what the new system is expected to be able to do
• how the new system is expected to do this
• what people want from the new system
• which working methods from the old system should be incorporated into the new system
 INVESTIGATION AND ANALYSIS

• All of the information obtained through

interviews, questionnaires, observations and
paper trails is carefully examined and
analysed to determine the requirements for
the new IT system.
• The findings are translated into a set of
specific diagrams which represent how the
system will work and the processes required.

• System diagrams
• Description of stage
• People involved in this stage
• What is created at the end of the stage
• Adv
• Dis
• Methodologies 

1) Waterfall Model 
2) Spiral Model 
3) Rapid Application Development (RAD) Model 

• For each model / methodology above you need to research your understanding on the following points:

A) A definition / description of what the methodology is generally about (your own words) 
B) The stages and steps that take place in the methodology (ensure you can explain and understand what
happens in these relevant stages)
C) Advantages and disadvantages of the using the model 
D) A diagram to illustrate your understanding of the model